Filling-head for bottling apparatus.



N0. 658,2". Patented Sept. I8, |900. E. E. FORD.

FILLING HEAD FOR BUTT-LING APPARATUS. (Applicntionxeamar. 2'7; 1900.; (No Model.)

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NITED STATES ATENT trice.

ELIO'I E. FORD, OF RAHWAY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO HENRY JoHNsoN, or sAMErLAcE.

FILLING-HEAD FOR BOTTLING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming` part of Letters Patent N o. 658,211, dated September 18, 1900.

Application filed March 27, 1900. Serial No. 10,349 (No model.)

To al?, whom, it may concern: y

Be it known that I, ELIOT E. FORD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rahway, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Filling-Heads for Bottling Apparatus; and I do hereby declare'the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon,which` form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to bottle-filling apparat us, and is an improvement on the part generally known by the name of the llinghead.

The object of my invention is to combine with a iil1ing-head,havingthe customary vacuuln-Vent for connecting the filling-head with the vacuum-pump, the liquid-filling vent to establish connection with the cask containing the liquid and provided with a cushioned nozzle for the reception of the bottle-mouth, an automatic relief and escape valve, as an exit for gases when an overpressure occurs, in a vent which will lead such gases causing the said overpressure back again to the top of the iilling-cask.

Inasmuch as the filling of bottles with an.

effervescent liquid by means of a vacuum# pump and a charging apparatus is so well known in the state of the art and, moreover, has been particularly illustrated and described as to such lling process in a companion application of mine, it will be unnecessary to describe such filling elements again in this application. Furtherm ore,as the means embodied in the bottle-stand and the operation of the same are immaterial to a complete understanding of my invention land form no part thereof the description of those means will similarly be omitted.

In the companion application above referred to I have described and claimed the combination of an automatic relief'and escape valve in a filling-head, where the liquid is secured in the bottles by means of corks or resilient Stoppers of a like nature. In this application I shall describe and claim an automaiicV relief and escape valve in combination with bottles that are closed by means of automatic Stoppers. f

In describing my improvedmeans I shall call attention tothe accompanying drawings,

Fig 3 is a companion'view to Fig. l on a smaller scale, showing a form of filling-head 'that can be used irrespective of the kind of stopper that may be used.

In the respective ligures, A indicates the lilling-head as a whole, having a vacuum-vent Afa liquidlilling vent A2, and a gas-return vent AS, having an automatic relief-valve A4 secured in it, permitting a return to the top of the filling-cask of the gases causing an overpressure during the filling ofthe bottle. A5 is the nozzle, having a cushion A6 to make the connection air-tight with the bottle B. C isa vertical stem lying in prolongation of the passage-way D, leading to the bottle. Into this passageway all these vents A, A2, and

-A3 lead. A valve E has a seat E in said passage-way D, said valve E controlling the communication between the inside of the bottle and means for creating a vacuum therein.

'The valve E is secured to a valve-rod E2, passing up through the vertical stem C, said rod being pivoted by means of a pin E3 to a leverarm F, the lever-arm F having a link G attached at one end, such link iinally being pivoted in the ears of a lug H, forming. part of the yokel I. A stuffing-box is formed at J, and an expansion-spring K counteracts a downward pressureV on the lever-arm F, lying to that effect between a collar E4, forming part of or aftiXed to the valve-rod E2, and the top of the stniiing-box cover J A stop-cock L controls the communication between the liquid-filling vent and the passage-way D, leading to the interior of the bottle, and is operated by a lever-arm L. Secured in the valve-rod E2 by being screw-cut on a part thereof and fitting into a similarly screw-cut hole in the valve-rod is a plunger M, consist- IOO ing of the plunger-head M and its screw-cut rod M. As this plunger consequently forms a xed part of the valve-rod E2, it will he ohvious that a downward pressure on the handle of the lever-arm F will force the disk N, made of suitable soft, air-tight, and exihle material, down into the cage B', thus aitording opportunity for the bottle to be emptied of its air and subsequently filled by the manipulation of the lever-arm L.

Proceeding now to the description of the gas-return vent A3, it will he seen to have an opening O, communicating with the passageway D. This opening O is closed by means of the valve A4, having a valve-rod O, around which valve-rod is coiled an expansion-spring O2. The said spring lies between the valvehead A4 and a disk O3, suitably secured in the vent A3 for present purposes by having the interior end of the vent screw-eut and the disk similarly screw-cut. It can consequently he seen that unless some pressure stronger than the action of the coiled spring is exerted on the side of the valve turning toward the passage-way D the valve will remain closed. The spring O2 must as a consequence he constructed and tempered to such an exact degree oi itness that in case the pressure loecomes so strong during the filling of the hottle that it turns the liquid into foam the spring will yield and give vent to the super charged liquid.

Reviewing the operative method oi' my improved iilling-head, it will thus be seen that a manipulation of the leverarm in the direcIl tion of the arrowr Y Will open the valve E, and simultaneously therewith the plunger M will flatten out the disk N in the cage B', re-

sulting in the creation of a vacuum in the.

bottle by the Well-known vacuum means, whereupon a manipulation of the lever-arm L', so as to turn the passage L2 in the valve L in alinement with the passage in the vent A2, will cause the liquid to fillthe bottle. If then the pressure charged liquid should While it is rushing into the bottle beso overcharged with gasl that it runs the risk of being converted into foam, the return gas-vent A3 Will, hy reason 0I the automatic Valve A4, conduct such supercharges of gas hack into the filling-Cask. This is what could not he accomplished by any of the old hand-pressure escape-valves, inasmuch as they were all controlled and manipulated hy the operator directly, Who very naturally would be quite incapable of striking the exact moment when such overcharge Ot' gas took place, and could consequently fill the bottle with only indifferent success-that is to say, generally speaking, with more foam than liquid.

The illustration in Fig. 8 is an exact counterpart of the illustration in Fig. l with this exception, that in order to provide for filling a bottle that might not have any cage and automatic stopper the plunger Mis removed from the valve-rod E2, thus showing a con struction of filling-head having my automatic relief and escape valve attached which Will suit a bottle no matter what kind of automatic stopper such bottle may be provided with.

What I therefore, in accordance with the above description, desire to claim and secure protection for by Letters Patent is In a filling-head for a bottling apparatus, filling bottles having automatic Stoppers, said iilling-head having a vacuum-vent, a liquidfilling vent and a cushioned nozzle; the combination of a gas-return vent having an autovmatic relief and escape valve cooperating with the said iilling-head substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony that I. claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 29th day of January, A. D. 1900.

ELIOT E. FORD.

Witnesses:

JOHN DARNEY, AUG. M. TREsCHoW. 

